Female Io Moth

Moth? I saw this on a neighbor’s screen door in Satellite Beach, FL on 7 Jan 2007. First picture is what I saw before prodding with a twig to see if it was alive. It didn’t move, but I was able to move the wing coverlets and took 2nd picture. Charles E. McKusick

Hi Charles, This is a female Io Moth, one of the smaller native Saturnid Moths. Saturnid Moths do not eat as adults. The females release a pheromone that attracts a mate, often from miles away. These beauties fly just to mate and reproduce. The eyespots are a defense mechanism. If a bird or other hungry carnivore pecks at the moth, ths “eyes” are revealed, startling the would be predator.